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Welcome to my blog. I am honored to have you visit. I hope you'll find my articles a blessing. I welcome your input and especially comments and questions.

I write as a Christian from Jerusalem, Israel about Biblical subjects.

I am particularly interested in the subjects of children, families, women's issues, corporal punishment, science and nature as these subjects relate to the Holy Scriptures.

For more information, see my website: www.biblechild.com

With every good wish - Samuel Martin

Saturday, August 16, 2014

A Comparison between Jesus Christ and the Sabbath Day of the Lord

A Comparison between Jesus Christ and the Sabbath Day of the Lord

The Sabbath Day

Jesus Christ

Mankind are urged to imitate God in their behavior, who rested on the Sabbath Day. God chose to meet and
join mankind in “rest” as one on the Sabbath. (Genesis 2:3)

Jesus
Christ is the meeting place between mankind and God. He is the Immanuel (God
with us). He, like the Sabbath, is the meeting point where God and mankind
meet. (Isaiah 7 & 8 and Matt. 1:23) "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us ... (John 1:14 ESV)

The
Sabbath is a symbol of the Millennial reign of God, a 1,000 year period at the
end of the age, where God and mankind will rest together (Genesis 2:3 and
Psalm 90)

Jesus
Christ will be God’s representative of earth and we will join with him in the
Millennial age (Revelation 20:3) that will last for 1,000 years and is called
a keeping of a Sabbath (Hebrews 4:9)

When
the Sabbath arrives, a person enters into it. (Heschel, The Sabbath)

When
a person becomes a Christian, they are said to be “in Christ.” (Galatians
3:26)

The
Sabbath is a day of rest (Exodus 20:10) and those who enter into it are
refreshed, renewed and reborn weekly. (Heschel, The Sabbath)

Jesus
Christ is a person of rest (Matthew 11:28-30) and all who enter into a
relationship with Him are reborn, refreshed and will be raised from the dead.

There
are no gender differences on the Sabbath, which is a symbol of the world to come.
(“but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD
your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter
… Exodus 20:10 ESV)

In
Christ and in heaven, there are no gender differences at all. (Galatians 3:28
– (“there is no male and female,
for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Galatians 3:28 ESV) St. Peter
also said that husbands (men) and wives (women) are “heirs together in the
grace of life.” (I Peter 3:7)

There
are no social distinctions of human beings on the Sabbath (no slaves and no
foreigners). All are one on the Sabbath (your male servant, female servant … or thesojourner who is within your gates. (Exodus
20:10 ESV)

In
Christ, there are no social differences at all. (There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor
free, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:28 ESV)

On
the Sabbath day, “work” (understood as ‘purposeful acts from which advantage is
derived’ – Danby, The Mishnah) were forbidden. So all during the Sabbath were
the same in God’s eyes.

In
Christ, no one has an advantage over anyone else. (“you are all one in Christ
Jesus” – Galatians 3:28 ESV)

On
the Sabbath day, the “works” of mankind were to cease on that day.

In
Christ, mankind also ceases to work, knowing that our “works” are not
adequate for salvation.

On
the Sabbath, no one could buy or sell anything and one’s economic power could
not be exercised. All, in that sense, during the Sabbath, were equal. As
such, this enhanced the spiritual time aspect of the Sabbath. There were
serious consequences for those who violated the law of the Sabbath.

Early
Christians who pursued a life “in Christ” sought to live a permanent
Sabbath-like existence by rejecting material advantage and seeing to it that
monetary power was not exercised in the early Church “and it (money) was distributed to each as any had need.” (Acts 4:35
ESV) There were serious consequences for those who lied to the Spirit.

The
moon, which is reflected light, has no influence or part of the Sabbath. The
governance of the timing of the Sabbath is totally dominated by the Sun,
which is a Biblical symbol of goodness/life.

Jesus
Christ, the Messiah, is called the “Sun of Righteousness” in the book of
Malachi (Malachi 4:2 and Psalm 19:5)

The
arrival of the Sabbath in the mystical circles of Judaism had elements of a
wedding celebration associated with it (Heschel, The Sabbath)

Our
attachment to Christ Jesus has elements of a marriage agreement. (Matthew 25 and Ephesians 5:32)

The
Sabbath was to be a day/time of joy/delight (Isaiah 58:13) and mirrors what heaven
will be like in the future.

Joy
is a major fruit of the Holy Spirit of God and the believer and is one of
God’s central attributes (Galatians 5:22,23)

3 comments:

Ron
said...

Very astute to note all these points. However..... the weekly Sabbath was a shadow, as were many things in the OT. Now the reality is here why focus on the shadow? As I am not a Jew or under the OC, I don't have a weekly Sabbath. My Sabbath is my constant companion and Rest, Jesus.

I grew up in a Sabbath keeping denomination. There was lots of talk growing up about the Sabbath. Lots of talk, but very little substance as to its real meaning.

I am not in this post advocating anyone to do or not do anything relative to the issue of the Sabbath. While we are indeed as you mentioned not under the Mosaic covenant, I believe, however, that there is information therein which is useful to study to help us find those important nuggets of wisdom which can help us understand the Lord and our Father better.

What I am attempting to do in this post is to open up the subject of the Sabbath to a greater level of understanding because there is a richness of understanding concerning what this day, which as you said, is a shadow of things to come, means.

In addition, I think that a study of this subject helps us to better understand what it was the apostles in the New Testament were looking forward to.

This is a mature subject especially so when we consider it being raised in Hebrews Chapter Four.

When we get the book of Hebrews positioned properly in its rightful place after the letters to the seven church of Paul (after II Thessalonians) and before I Timothy, we can see that what is being presented therein is a very mature discussion for those believers who have their minds in tune to what I will call a "Hebraic orientation". It is this orientation which I am seeking to make clearer through this post.

The Sabbath is a weekly symbol of what our future life in the age to oome will encompass. I personally wish to know more about that future life (which is very mysterious and we often do not have a lot of information to go on in Scripture) and feel that not opening up subjects for discussion and elaboration may mean that opportunities for learning are reduced.

So Samuel, I was on the 'Dig' in 1971. Your father can mother drove with me through the Valley of Hinnom and your father said he went through hell with your mother quite often.

I kept the weekly Sabbath for decades, preached it and condemned all who kept Sunday. Hebrews and Galatians were books I have only come to appreciate since I finally saw that the seventh day pointed to a person, not a thousand years. My mother, who I love dearly, is a strict observer of the seventh day and all the annual days too. She is saved as am I. So my feelings about the Sabbath in no way condemn those who observe the day. I just feel they lug around a burden that restricts them unnecessarily. There is guilt where there should be freedom.

Go ahead and discuss the Sabbath if it enriches your readers. But I suspect that most who are interested feel that God expects a physical observance and miss the overwhelming focus that there is a superior way, that Hebrews stresses again and again. God bless you. Ron

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About Me

Samuel Martin was born in England and is the youngest child of Dr. Ernest L. and Helen R. Martin, who are both Americans. He lived in the UK for the first 7 years of his life before moving to the USA with his family at age 7. He lived in the USA until 2001 when he married a native Israeli and relocated to live in Jerusalem. He and his wife, Sonia, have 2 daughters.
His experience with biblical scholarship began at an early age. His father initiated a program in conjunction with Hebrew Univ. and Prof. Benjamin Mazar, where over a 5 year period, some 450 college students came to work on an archaeological excavation in Jerusalem starting in 1969. Since that first trip, Samuel has visited Israel on 14 different occasions living more than 5 years of his life in the country. He has toured all areas of Israel as well as worked in several archaeological excavations.
Today, he has begun his academic career publishing 2 books dealing with biblical issues.
I write regularly on biblical subjects with a particular interest in children, families, nature, science and the Bible,and gender in the Biblical context.